wiggle

To wiggle is to get yourself out of something, to quickly move back and forth, or to fidget and squirm around.

(verb)

When you get out of doing dishes by declaring you have to use the bathroom and disappearing for 10 minutes, this is an example of when you wiggle out of doing the dishes.
The movement of a shaking bowl of gelatin is an example of when it wiggles.
When you squirm around and fidget in your chair using small movements, this is an example of when you wiggle.

The definition of a wiggle is a small fidgety movement.

(noun)

The squirmy movements made by a little puppy who is trying to escape from a hug are an example of a wiggle.

See wiggle in Webster's New World College Dictionary

transitive verb, intransitive verb wiggled, wiggling

to move or cause to move with short, jerky or twisting motions from side to side; wriggle shakily or sinuously

Origin: ME wigelen, prob. < MDu & MLowG wiggelen, freq. of wiggen, to move from side to side, akin to OE wegan, to move: for IE base see wag

noun

the act or an instance of wiggling

See wiggle in American Heritage Dictionary 4

verb wig·gled, wig·gling, wig·gles

verb, intransitive

To move back and forth with quick irregular motions: The gelatin wiggled on the plate.
a. To move or proceed with a twisting or turning motion; wriggle: wiggled restlessly in her chair; wiggled through the crowd.
b. To insinuate or extricate oneself by sly or subtle means: wiggled out of a social engagement.

verb, transitive

To cause to move back and forth with quick irregular motions: wiggle a loose tooth.
To make (one's way, for example) by or as if by wiggling: The pitcher wiggled his way out of a jam.

noun

A wiggling movement or course.

Origin:

Origin: Middle English wiglen

Origin: , probably from Middle Low German wiggelen, to totter; see wegh- in Indo-European roots

Related Forms: